Shauna was reading the front page. Or maybe she was feigning it, too.
Bad enough that he’d given her a hard time for stuff he really couldn’t blame her for.
What was worse was the way he’d grabbed her, with no warning—not even to himself. And then he’d given her a kiss. One that could have knocked not only his socks off, but his shoes, his pants, his boxers…Lord, how he’d wanted to touch her more. Kiss her everywhere. And then—
Only then had he decided to play it cool.
Just like the weak coffee he now sipped from a decorated foam cup.
He had to get control of himself. Of everything.
He took a bite of his breakfast sandwich. He’d only been gone a few days, but all he had to eat at his place was stuff Andee liked. But now his daughter was missing. Kidnapped.
He crumpled the edges of the newspaper in his fingers before he chilled out enough to relax, just a little.
He had been up all night, working at the computer he kept in the corner of his bedroom, taking what little control he could of the situation. That was how he dealt with his cases: by organizing. He devised a detailed investigation plan for each, and followed it. Got results, then he turned them over to the client—along with a healthy invoice.
But how the hell could he take control of his daughter’s kidnapping?
By using Shauna and her story? How? So what if some piddly detail had changed? It was the end that mattered. If anything mattered.
When he’d gotten his arms around Shauna years ago, it had been physically, which had him crazy from pleasure. But he’d never gotten his arms around what she claimed to do with her writing. And that had driven him really crazy.
Across from him now, she calmly sipped her coffee. He visualized himself as that cup, meeting her pliant, hungry lips again.
Shauna glanced up from the paper and caught his eye. He looked back at the article on the Dodgers he’d been trying to read for the past three minutes. But it wasn’t the team that turned his breathing so fast and irregular that he could have been running bases himself.
“I don’t see anything in the news about Andee, thank heavens,” Shauna said quietly. She wore a gold Arizona State University T-shirt this morning, and he liked the way it looked, with waves of her blond hair spilling over the shoulders.
He liked the way it hugged her curves, too.
“That’s a good thing,” he agreed.
He shouldn’t be noticing the way the clinging material molded around her lovely, firm breasts. But he’d thought about those curves a lot last night, after he’d felt them against him before he stomped from her room, even while concentrating on his investigation plan.
Thought about her slim, sexy shape even more as he heard her puttering around in Andee’s bathroom as she got ready for bed last night. And as he took his own cool shower before dawn that morning, in the master bathroom off his bedroom, to ensure his continued wakefulness. Oh, yeah, those thoughts kept him, and his strategic body parts, awake.
“Finished eating?” he asked abruptly. “We’ll get coffee refills and take them along.”
“Sure.”
He didn’t head his GTO to his office as he usually did first thing. Instead, he drove north on the San Diego Freeway, got on the 118 and took the 210 east toward Sunland. He called Margo on the way, let her know they were coming.
“What’s your plan, Hunter?” Shauna asked after he hung up.
“What?”
“Your plan. I know you must have one.”
“You remember that?” he asked, pleased despite himself. He glanced at her. She smiled, but her eyes looked wistful. Even sad. He had an urge to stroke the side of her face, touch her soft skin and smooth the sadness away.
He kept driving.
“Of course I remember,” she replied. “You always had a plan for every case you worked on as a cop. You’d tell me about them, at least what wasn’t confidential. You used to say that anyone who worked without a plan could never accomplish anything.”
“Yeah. You used to tease me, ask to see the plan I’d made about us.”
“Good thing you didn’t really do one,” she said.
“Yeah,” he said. The fact was, he had started a plan about them, not long after they’d met. He’d put it aside, since it felt so damned good to be erotically out of control with her.
Later, he had been glad he’d never gone back to it. Once he devised a plan, he liked to see it through until the end.
But he didn’t want to get into that now. Instead, he told her about the plan he really had devised last night.
He had first decided exactly how to search for Andee today, utilizing Simon. Then, he had researched Margo’s neighbors on the databases Strahm Solutions subscribed to on the Internet, plus the few people Margo had mentioned whose first or last names began with T, and some of those Hunter thought of who might get a thrill out of hurting him. He’d communicated with Simon, who was a whole lot more skilled in using those databases—probably because the guy had the patience of a cathedral full of saints, unlike Hunter, who had none.
He had told Simon to work fast, since Banger had offered only a day until cops would overrun the investigation. Well-meaning cops, sure, but that wouldn’t help if word was out and the kidnapper got steamed about seeing his ugly crime plastered all over the media.
Thank God for Banger’s willingness to low-key the situation initially in the hope they’d find Andee first.
Shauna offered a couple of suggestions, which pleased Hunter, especially when she told him, “Good plan. It makes great use of your time and resources.”
It didn’t incorporate her story, though. How could it? The plans he came up with were real, based on facts, reasoning and strategy. Shauna’s stories came out of the blue, from emotions and imagination and pixie dust. He wouldn’t mention that now, though. His attitude about the differences was one of the many things they’d argued about years ago.
A while later, at the curb in front of Margo’s house, Shauna said, “I’ll wait here.”
“No, according to my plan, you come, too.” His firm tone shouldn’t have left room for further discussion, but Shauna didn’t take the hint.
She remained in the passenger seat after he opened his door. “I thought you were going to talk to Margo about who she spoke with yesterday when Andee disappeared.”
“That’s right.” That was item number one.
“It’ll go faster if I’m not there.”
“Maybe, but you’re coming. You weren’t in your story at all, so having you joined at the hip with me, so to speak, might help you change it again, like last night.” That was the best use he could make of it: to figure out how to change it. “And you should hear what Margo says about the neighbors so I won’t have to repeat it.”
“All right.” Though Shauna sounded reluctant, she left the car.
The first thing he asked—again—when Margo opened the door was “Any word from the kidnapper?”
“No,” Margo wailed. “I’d have called you if I’d heard anything else. Oh, Hunter, I can’t stand this.” Tears rolled down her cheeks, and she dabbed them away with a tissue.
Margo was dressed, as usual, to be camera-ready. Her yellow shirt was well ironed and tucked into light pants. Her light brown hair appeared newly combed, and her face remained actress-gorgeous despite the redness around her eyes.
“Well, come in.” She aimed a brave smile at Hunter, which turned as cold as one of Andee’s favorite frozen fruit bars when she looked at Shauna, before waving them both into the house. She showed them again into her living room, and Shauna and he sat on one sofa, facing Margo on the other. Margo had a photo of Andee on the coffee table in front of her.
Both women remained civil despite the wary way they watched each other. But Margo, despite the continued moisture in her eyes, got on his case. She’d done that a lot while they were married. Still did it about matters concerning Andee, and the money he gave Margo to care for their daughter as he
traveled. It had to be enough to keep Andee in the style to which she had been accustomed. Of course expensive creature comforts really didn’t matter to a five-year-old.
As to Margo’s tastes, this was a community-property state, so when they’d split, she got half of all he’d earned while they were together—a lot more than she’d earned from her occasional acting gigs, and he hadn’t asked for his half of that. If she couldn’t maintain the lifestyle she wanted from it, and from whatever she earned now on her own, it was no longer his problem.
And whether or not he had to be so generous, he gave her plenty of money to take care of Andee when she watched their child.
Trying tactfully to keep her from becoming defensive, Hunter quizzed an uncharacteristically quiet Margo again about what she had done after finding Andee missing and who in the area she had spoken with. “What about people who might have a grudge against you?” he finished. “Have you thought of anyone else?”
“I’m not exactly the type to make enemies,” Margo said. “There are a couple of other actresses considered to be of a similar type to me that I rather despise, but I don’t think either would kidnap my child to get back at me. Do you, lady shrink?” She turned toward Shauna, her expression challenging.
“Without talking with them, I can’t really offer an opinion,” Shauna replied.
“And do you offer opinions on other things?” An angry gleam lit Margo’s eyes for a moment before she smiled ironically. “Of course you do. That’s your job. Well, as to my rivals, both are working right now—small roles on shoots that I tried out for, too. I don’t even think they’re in town.”
“Give me whatever information you have on them,” Hunter said. “I agree it’s a long shot, but we’ll eliminate them as potential suspects.”
“What about you?” Margo demanded. “In your line of work, you must make enemies. Maybe one is the kidnapper. Our poor little Andee.” Her tone rose, and she picked up Andee’s picture from the table and looked at it tearfully.
“There are a couple,” Hunter allowed. “I’ve got Simon and my staff checking them out, just in case.”
“And you’ll let me know if anyone looks suspicious?”
“Banger first,” Hunter said. “Then you, if it makes sense to tell you.”
“Andee is my daughter, too,” Margo cried. “Of course it makes sense. I have to know what’s going on. You can’t keep me in the dark, Hunter.” She hugged the photo closer.
“He won’t,” Shauna said. “I won’t let him.”
Margo turned a damp but haughty stare on her. “Do you really think you can get my dear ex-husband to do anything?” She stressed “ex-husband,” as if rubbing their former relationship in Shauna’s face.
As if Shauna gave a damn any longer.
Shauna responded, “No, I can’t get Hunter to act. But if I learn of anything that Andee’s mother should know and he doesn’t tell you, I will.”
She’d spoken mildly, and her gaze shifted from Margo’s to his. He didn’t contradict her. But if he learned of something Margo shouldn’t know about, he’d make good and sure that Shauna didn’t learn of it, either.
Unless it showed up in her story…
And that wouldn’t happen, no matter the tiny triumph they’d had over it last night.
“Thank you,” Margo said to Shauna, sounding sincere for the first time. “As a psychologist, is there anything you can tell us about the awful man who took our daughter? I mean, I know you haven’t talked to him. But I’ve told Hunter about the conversations I’ve had with him—he sounds so horrible. So threatening, especially if we go to the police. Do you think it is one of Hunter’s enemies?” More tears welled in her eyes.
“I wish I knew,” Shauna replied softly. “I have an impression that he’s a person Hunter or you know, though, so if anything he said, or may say in future calls, reminds you of someone, be sure to tell Hunter.”
“Really?” Margo shrilled as wetness spilled down her cheeks again. “You actually think it’s someone we know?”
Hunter heard a hint of hysteria in his ex-wife’s tone. And a hysterical Margo was not a pleasant thing.
“It’s only a guess at this point,” he said to Margo. “Just keep it in mind as a possibility, like Shauna said.”
“All right,” Margo said, calming a little.
When they were finished talking to Margo, Hunter went into the backyard again to look around, now that it was daylight but still a little too early to call on neighbors. Not that it was likely that Banger and Simon would have missed anything, but taking a look himself was in his plan. Shauna didn’t follow.
When he returned inside a few minutes later, Shauna was in the living room alone. “Where’s Margo?” Hunter asked.
“She didn’t tell me,” Shauna said with a wry smile.
“I’ll find her.” He headed for the door to the rest of the house. “It’s time for us to go.”
Shauna murmured something like “amen,” but when he glanced back, she was sitting there with an innocent expression on her face. A sweet face. Much more appealing than Margo’s, despite his ex’s star-of-stage-and-screen enhanced gorgeousness, for Shauna was naturally pretty, without a lot of fuss and makeup.
And sexy? Hell, she only had to aim her most innocent gaze at him to remind him of how good they’d been together once.
And when a hint of her own recollection of hot, steamy nights they’d once shared surfaced in her eyes, in that kiss they’d…
With a mutter of his own, he went to find Margo. She was on the phone in her bedroom and hung up as Hunter walked in.
“That wasn’t the kidnapper?” he demanded.
“No.” Her laugh was brittle. “I just can’t believe that Shauna thinks anyone I’m even acquainted with would do such a horrible thing.” Her expression crumpled. “My poor baby.”
“We’ll get her back, Margo. Believe me.” No matter what Shauna’s story said. “Right now, we’re going to canvass the neighbors.”
“You won’t tell them Andee has been kidnapped?” Margo’s pale brown eyes went round as her voice again grew shrill.
“What do you think? No, what I’ll tell those you talked to yesterday is that when you spoke with them, Andee had somehow slipped out the back gate. I’ll say you found her and she’s fine, but I’m asking around to get better information on how she got out, where she went, so we can prevent its happening again.”
She relaxed. “Fine. And you’ll tell me what you learn?”
“Sure,” he said with a straight face.
He retrieved Shauna and they left. “We’ll start in the alley behind the house,” he told her, “although just because it’s about the same time of day Andee disappeared yesterday doesn’t mean the same people will be outside. Then we’ll head up and down both the street Margo’s house faces and the one at the far side of the alley.”
She nodded her assent, and they both walked toward the alley.
Shauna had no problem with the course of action that came next in Hunter’s plan, for it had been described similarly in her story—even if she hadn’t been part of it:
Because Andee had been taken from her house, her father decided to question the neighbors, in case they’d seen anything. But he learned little that was useful.
A neighbor was irritable.
A neighbor was too nosy.
A neighbor had actually seen something useful but didn’t realize it.
Yet another neighbor offered help and sympathy.
Shauna wouldn’t remind Hunter of those written words. She probably didn’t have to.
And she certainly would keep them in mind as they spoke with the people who lived near Andee Strahm’s mother.
Chapter 6
Although the alley behind Margo’s was only wide enough for one car to comfortably ease through at a time, it wasn’t one-way. Otherwise, it was fairly pleasant, Shauna thought. Early-morning sunlight streamed between garages and along the well-maintained paving. No litter or graffiti in si
ght.
Or anything else that looked ominous to her. To Hunter, though, a few steps behind, it might be another story. Perhaps his trained investigator’s eye saw something she didn’t, for when she looked back, his mouth was a grim line of concentration. He turned his head slowly, looking not at her but beyond.
It was all too easy to imagine a young, confused child being propelled into an idling car in this narrow, secluded alley. But its constriction had a good side, too. If anyone had been here, the abduction shouldn’t have gone unnoticed.
Right now, only one garage door was open, catty-corner from Margo’s. Shauna hurried in that direction, then made herself breathe shallowly. The vehicle inside was running, a large old car with fins that appeared to be from the early 1960s. Its exhaust smelled terrible.
As Shauna drew near, a door opened at the far side of that garage and a man came through. He opened the driver’s door and started to get in.
Shauna hurried forward. “Good morning,” she called.
The man stopped and looked around, his eyes finally lighting on her. He grinned. “Good morning.”
He was maybe seventy years old or more, dressed in a nice sport shirt and dressy slacks. His hair was more gray than black, cut very short. His nose was prominent, and he had deep crow’s-feet at the edges of his eyes behind his glasses.
Shauna heard Hunter’s footsteps behind her but didn’t wait for him to catch up. Was this man the irritable neighbor, the nosy one, the sympathetic one—or the one who knew something helpful about Andee’s abduction without being aware of it?
When she started to speak, Hunter put his hand on her shoulder and squeezed, silencing her. She stayed aware of the contact, wanting to shrug him away while at the same time feeling an odd reassurance by the connection, as though they were acting as a team.
As they once had…until it became clear that their team of two was incapable of functioning as a unit.
Not a Moment Too Soon Page 7
